Whelp! This is one of those adventures where you just shake your head and say, “well, at least we know better for next time.”
So not long after getting settled, it was time to make the trek over to Calton Hill for the Beltane festivities. For anyone not familiar, Beltane is an ancient Gaelic festival that marks the mid-point between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Beltane is one of the four seasonal festivals—along with Samhain, Imbolc, and Lughnasadh—and is observed as a “springtime festival of optimism” celebrating fertility and renewal of the earth. A pageant is held where a May Queen is paraded around the grounds and sacred bonfires are lit to mark the occasion.
Not gonna lie, this was also something that I was looking forward to as a reader of the Outlander book series since it may or may not be one of those special days where a modern lass could slip through the stones and travel in time to be rescued by a hunky Sam Heughan in a loosely wrapped kilt. #Hawt #YesIRead #ILikeBigBooksandICannotLie
So I will hand it to the person in charge of the Scottish weather because at least they held off on the freezing temps and pelting rain until we were high above the city and taking in the spectacular view. Not only did we get soaked through our rain gear, but to add insult to injury, we also were freezing our tushies off. It was barely dusk, only a few fires were lit, but we were miserable so we threw in the towel and went back to the hotel for some hot toddies.
We missed a lot of the fun, but caught up on some spectacular photos online the next morning.
Notes for next time:
- Bring bag with extra layers
- Pack a waterproof tarp or blanket to sit on
- Bring a thermos of hot beverage
- Buy Handwarmers
- Snacks! (Always)
- Buy disposable mylar blankets
- Figure out a bus route home